If you haven't got anything nice to say don't say anything!

I dislike stack overflow. I think they've got it wrong. You lose control of your content too easily and are heavily constrained as to what you can and cannot ask. They also lack a time dimension.

Sure it's a considerable improvement over experts exchange, but that doesn't say much.

What you're asking is for a way to force people to stay on-topic and not have tangents within the discussions, can you even conceive that working here?

True, but I find it is like a constantly updating FAQ. The clearest, best written answer with the most relevant sources is always voted to the top rather than it appearing on page 2. Sometimes there is one best answer to the question asked.